QSuper to close Self Invest option to new investors

QSuper, part of Australian Retirement Trust (ART), will be closing its Self Invest option to new investors from July. 

Earlier this month, ART head of advice and guidance Anne Fuchs said the fund would not be offering a self-managed option to members as she doubted if it would see the payback from spending member funds within two years. 

“Qsuper had a self-directed investment product in the past that did have some use, but we think about making decisions which are in the members’ best financial interests, and we have to get a two-year payback when we spend members’ money. 

“When we think about the opportunities now for our 2.2 million members, the demand is in creating a best-of-breed retirement income product and how we can extend lifetime income products, they would be the obvious place to start. 

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“For us, from a business case, it would become hard to get that two-year payback [from an SMSF]. When you’re spending members’ money in a constrained environment, it would be a challenge.”

QSuper (which merged with Sunsuper to create ART last February) has now confirmed its existing Self Invest option would be closing to new members from 1 July 2023. 

Existing members would be unaffected, and there would be no changes to the Self Invest portal for current members.

In a note to members, ART said: “At Australian Retirement Trust, we use our size and scale to find and make investments to grow members’ superannuation savings and help maximise their retirement income. We’re also focused on delivering a market-leading range of investment options to help you retire well with confidence.

“Delivering this new range of investment options requires a number of progressive changes, one of which is closing the Self Invest option to new investors.”

Any investors who wanted to set up a new Self Invest account were urged to do so before 30 June 2023.